Weddings Winter 2011 > Planner

Marcey Brownstein Catering & Events

This in-demand caterer can put together understated affairs or gala blowouts, crafting elegant hors d’oeuvre such as seared tuna on rice crisps with avocado coulis and restaurant-quality entrées such as ginger-marinated lamb with cilantro-lime butter. Cocktail-reception menus start at $75 per person; seated dinners at $150.

Mark Fahrer Caterer

Fahrer is a master of creative Continental party food (such as baby lamb chops as hors d’oeuvre) and an old hand at international cooking (a favorite from Morocco is b’steeya—squab, nut, and raisin pie). He says he puts his psychology degree to work when he meets with clients: first assessing personality types, then customizing the menu. From $100 per person.

Mary Guiliani Catering & Events

Giuliani puts a chic twist on time-honored comfort foods: She adds truffles and foie gras to grilled cheese sandwiches and transforms macaroni and cheese into a spicy tartlet. Couples who prefer to eschew the formal sit-down dinner can count on a buffet that will be both surprising and delicious. Prices upon request.

Miss Elisabeth’s Catering

After graduating from the French Culinary Institute, Elisabeth Weinberg launched her catering company with an eye on local, seasonal, and organic ingredients. A family-style fall feast, for example, might include hearty fare like homemade gnocchi with local beefsteak tomatoes, and pan-seared filet mignon with roasted shallot mashed potatoes and waxed beans. From $150 per person.(ecofriendly)

The Movable Feast

Since 1979, this caterer has planned menus that incorporate clients’ family recipes—such as Grandma’s wild-cherry pirogen for a homesick Polish bride. Dishes like miso-glazed sea bass and herb-crusted filet mignon with a Barolo-and-portobello-mushroom reduction abound. From $135 per person.

Naturally Delicious Caterers and Event Planners

This Brooklyn caterer features seasonal, locally grown ingredients, some of which come straight from its half-acre, backyard organic garden. Founder Loren Michelle and her team help couples customize their menus—which can involve everything from passed hors d’oeuvre to a full sit-down dinner, including the cake—from a slew of multiethnic choices, comfort foods, and fusion styles. Cocktails from $75 per person; seated dinners from $150. (ecofriendly)

Olivier Cheng Catering and Events

These detail-oriented caterers work hard to appease the couples who hire them—for one half-vegan pair, they created two entirely different six-course menus. They specialize in New American cuisine with European and Asian influences; think beef carpaccio with snow-pea shoots, Parmesan, and truffle oil. From $200 per person.

PCK Catering

A 26-year culinary veteran, Peter Callahan of Callahan Catering has expanded into glatt-kosher food that is anything but predictable. Whimsical hors d’oeuvre, including hen canapés with handblown glass domes, and elegant entrées, such as a crispy sautéed halibut with chervil sauce, are expertly prepared with the certified kosher circle-K stamp of approval. From $300 per person.

Pies-N-Thighs

For weddings, P-N-T serves up delectable family-style meals like fried chicken and biscuits, smoked brisket, hush puppies, and their Brooklyn-famous Southern-style pies. From $20 per person. (good value)

The Raging Skillet

Couples with adventurous palates can count on the Raging Skillet. Chef Rossi’s specialty is multiethnic weddings—for a Jamaican groom and a Jewish-American bride, the menu included jerk chicken and latkes. From $110 to $220 per person.

R Cano Events

Rob Cano has built bonfires at one in the morning for “backyard barbecue” weddings, supplying hundreds of guests with late-night brandy, beignets, and flip-flops. He’s also outfitted every table of Carmine’s with a lazy Susan, serving personalized meals on communal platters. From $90 per person.

Red Table Catering

Founder Melanie de Coppet and business partner Brooke Costello will re-create a couple’s favorite meal from Paris, prepare a family-style Moroccan feast, or whip up a ten-course Pan-American tapas menu. Their team can serve anything from sweet-pea pancakes with caviar to pulled-pork sliders. No matter the fare, Red Table relies on seasonal menus and fresh ingredients. From $135 per person.

Robbins Wolfe Eventeurs

Whether you’re going for a haute Hamptons banquet or an offbeat downtown smorgasboard, these pros can nail it. They specialize in classics with a twist, as evinced by iconoclastic dishes like wild-duck chasseur with a chive-and-wild-rice pancake. Shrimp-and-lobster brochettes and mini-burger bars are both popular choices. From $125 to $250 per person.

Saffron 59 Catering & Event Planning

Executive chef Irene Khin Wong’s Southeast Asian fêtes delight guests with exotic touches, like waiters wearing sarongs and raw-silk jackets; palm leaves and kumquats adorning the tables; and unusual fare like lobster rolls wrapped in slivers of jicama and holy-basil leaves in rice paper. From $145 per person.

From the Winter 2011 New York Wedding Guide